Purpose: Chemical modification to a sandblasted, large-grit, acid-etched (SLA) implant surface has been shown to enhance the rate of osseointegration. The goal of the present study was to examine changes in stability for implants with a chemically modified SLA surface and to compare their out- comes to those of control implants.
Materials and Methods: A randomized controlled trial was con- ducted with 31 patients. Each patient received 2 implants with the same physical properties but with surfaces that were chemically different. The control implants had a standard SLA surface, while the test implants had a chemically modified surface. Resonance frequency analysis was assessed weekly over the first 6 weeks following implant placement.
Results: All implants proved clinically successful, allowing for restoration. Most implants were placed in the mandible (50 of 62). A shift in implant stabil- ity from decreasing stability to increasing stability (P < .001), occurred after 2 weeks for the test implants and after 4 weeks for the control implants.
Conclusion: The findings from this pilot study pro- vide clinical support for the potential for chemical modification of the SLA surface to alter biologic events during the osseointegration process and demonstrate levels of short-term clinical success simi- lar to those observed for implants with an SLA surface.
Keywords
Clinical trial, implant stability, implant surface chemistry, resonance frequency analysis